Pinchos Goldberg
Associate
Pinny Goldberg is an associate in the Labor & Employment Law Department. Pinny represents employers in a broad array of matters before federal and state courts, FINRA and other arbitration panels, and administrative agencies, including the EEOC and its state equivalents, and in pre-litigation negotiations. Matters he works on include discrimination and harassment, wage and hour, wrongful discharge, whistleblowing and retaliation, covenants not to compete, breaches of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, and tort and contract claims.
In addition to handling litigation and dispute resolution, Pinny regularly advises clients on a wide variety of employment issues, including drafting, reviewing and revising handbooks and workplace policies. He also addresses questions and concerns related to hiring, wage and hour issues, employee leave, performance problems, terminations of employment, and separation agreements and releases.
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On June 4, 2020, the SEC announced a nearly $50 million award to a whistleblower who provided the SEC with detailed, first-hand information that assisted the agency in bringing a successful enforcement action. While tipsters have previously shared a $50 million award, this is the largest amount ever awarded to a single whistleblower under the … Continue Reading
A Reuters article published on May 26, 2020 reports that the SEC has experienced an uptick in complaints amid the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the article, the SEC received about 4,000 complaints from mid-March through mid-May – a 35% increase from the previous year. With an abundance of tips at its disposal, the SEC is … Continue Reading
On May 5, 2020, a Magistrate Judge in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania issued a report and recommendation recommending that a defendant-employer’s motion for summary judgment dismissing a SOX whistleblower retaliation claim be granted, finding that the plaintiff had not engaged in protected activity. Wutherich v. Rice Energy Inc, No. … Continue Reading
In recent weeks, there have been numerous widely reported incidents of employees, particularly those in the health care industry, claiming that they have been retaliated against for reporting health and safety concerns related to COVID-19. Such complaints are indicative of the kinds of whistleblower and retaliation claims employers are likely to see in the near … Continue Reading
On April 16, 2020, the SEC announced payment of more than $27 million to a whistleblower who alerted the agency to misconduct that had occurred, in part, overseas. (The order granting the award can be accessed here.) In explaining the reason for its award determination, the SEC noted that the whistleblower had “repeatedly and strenuously … Continue Reading
On February 28, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed a former chief marketing officer’s claim of whistleblower retaliation under the Dodd Frank Act. Cellucci v. O’Leary No. 19-cv-02752 (S.D.N.Y. 2020). Background Plaintiff is one of several former chief executives of a closely-held infrastructure technology company who were terminated. … Continue Reading
As we previously reported, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Administrative Review Board has twice held that Sarbanes Oxley’s anti-retaliation provision does not apply extraterritorially. See Hu v. PTC, Inc., ARB Case No. 2017-0068 (Sept. 18, 2019); Perez v. Citigroup, Inc., ARB Case No. 2017-0031 (Sept. 30, 2019). An Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) of the DOL … Continue Reading
On December 9, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that, as a matter of law, directors cannot be held liable under the anti-retaliation provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Zornoza v. Terraform Global Inc., No. 18-cv-11617. Background Plaintiff is the former President and CEO of the defendant companies which … Continue Reading
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) recently released its statutorily mandated 2019 Annual Report covering the fiscal year ending on September 30, 2019. The report, prepared by the CFTC’s Whistleblower Office (“WBO”), outlines the tips received and awards granted during the fiscal year, and describes the status of the WBO’s initiatives to educate consumers about … Continue Reading
As reported in Proskauer’s Labor Relations Update blog, the NLRB issued an important opinion on December 17, 2019 relating to employer rules requiring confidentiality from employees during workplace investigations. Apogee Retail LLC d/b/a Unique Thrift Store, 368 NLRB No. 144 (2019). The Board held, in a reversal of the Obama-era Board, that employers may require … Continue Reading
On October 31, 2019, the ARB held that an employee who merely “hints” that he or she intends to file a whistleblower complaint has not engaged in protected activity sufficient to invoke the whistleblower protection provision in SOX. Hoptman v. Health Net of California, ARB Case No. 2017-0052, (Oct. 31, 2019). Background Complainant was a … Continue Reading
On September 25, 2019, a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators introduced the Whistleblower Programs Improvement Act (the “Act”), which would extend anti-retaliation protections under the Dodd-Frank Act to internal complaints. The Act mirrors a bill introduced in the House of Representatives earlier this year in direct response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Digital … Continue Reading
On September 19, 2019, the Second Circuit affirmed a New York District Court’s order compelling arbitration of a whistleblower retaliation claim under the Dodd-Frank Act. Daly v. Citigroup Inc., et al., No. 18-665. Background Plaintiff worked in the Private Bank Division of the bank. She allegedly complained to bank attorneys and human resources employees that … Continue Reading
On July 19, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island granted an employer’s motion to dismiss a SOX whistleblower claim, holding that the Plaintiff—an in-house attorney—failed to allege sufficient facts to show he had an objectively reasonable belief that fraud had occurred. Colesanti v. Dickinson, No. 18-491. Background Plaintiff was an … Continue Reading
On July 18, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania granted a defendant-employer’s motion for summary judgment on a SOX whistleblower retaliation claim, holding that the Plaintiff did not have an objectively reasonable belief that the defendant violated any SEC regulation. Reilly v. Glaxosmithkline, LLC, No. 17-cv-2045. Background Plaintiff worked in … Continue Reading
In a petition for a writ of mandamus filed on April 29, 2019 with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, an unidentified whistleblower who claims to have tipped the SEC to alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) by Teva Pharmaceuticals more than eight years ago asked the court to … Continue Reading
On June 13, 2019, the Fourth Circuit overturned the ARB’s decision in favor of a complainant, ruling that the plaintiff had not engaged in protected activity under the SOX whistleblower protection provision by complaining of a company’s use of a mandatory arbitration policy that allegedly was overly broad. Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. v. U.S. Dep’t … Continue Reading
On June 3, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York granted a defendant-employer’s motion for summary judgment on SOX and Dodd-Frank whistleblower retaliation claims, finding that the alleged whistleblowing did not involve fraud related to a public company. Tellez v. OTG Interactive, LLC, No. 15-cv-8984. Background Defendants operate restaurants and … Continue Reading
On June 3, 2019, the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower announced a $3 million award to two whistleblowers who provided the SEC with information that led it to investigate and successfully bring an enforcement action for securities fraud that affected retail investors. Because the whistleblowers submitted their tip to the SEC jointly, they will share … Continue Reading
On May 8, 2019, the House Committee on Financial Services passed H.R. 2515, the Whistleblower Protection Reform Act of 2019, which would amend Section 922 of Dodd-Frank to extend the statute’s anti-retaliation protections to employees who report alleged misconduct internally. Digital Realty Trust v. Somers H.R. 2515 was proposed in direct response to the U.S. … Continue Reading
On May 24, 2019, the SEC announced payment of more than $4.5 million to a whistleblower who sent an anonymous tip to the company alleging significant wrongdoing and then submitted the same information to the SEC. (The order granting the award can be accessed here.) In connection with this award, Jane Norberg, Chief of the … Continue Reading
This is an update on our previous blog posts regarding the Erhart v. BofI Holding, Inc. case. We previously reported in October 2017 and March 2017 on a whistleblower litigation brought by Charles Erhart, a former Bank of Internet Holding, Inc. (Bofl) internal auditor. In late 2018, the parties filed cross-motions for judgement on the … Continue Reading
On April 29, 2019, Assemblyman Michael Benedetto introduced Assembly Bill A7384, which would amend and significantly expand New York’s whistleblower statute, N.Y.L.L. §§ 740, 741. The identical Senate version of this bill, Senate Bill S3683, was introduced by Senator Brad Hoylman on February 12, 2019. The proposed amendments aim to bolster whistleblower protections for employees … Continue Reading
In an unusual and eye-catching case, a hospital facing a whistleblower lawsuit from a former senior executive under the False Claims Act (“FCA”) has brought suit against that individual, alleging he breached his fiduciary duty by failing to report the unlawful conduct internally and instead using that information as the basis for a whistleblower claim. … Continue Reading
SEC Announces Record-Breaking $50 Million Award to Whistleblower
By Lloyd B. Chinn, Pinchos Goldberg and Dominique Kilmartin on Posted in SEC
Reuters: SEC Eager to Prosecute COVID-19 Misconduct Amid Flurry of Whistleblower Complaints
By Harris Mufson, Pinchos Goldberg and Dominique Kilmartin on Posted in SEC
Pennsylvania Magistrate Judge Recommends Dismissal of SOX Whistleblower Claim for Lack of Protected Activity
By Steven J. Pearlman, Pinchos Goldberg and Heylee Bernstein on Posted in SOX Whistleblower Decisions
Whistleblower Claims on the Horizon Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
By Steven J. Pearlman, Lloyd B. Chinn, Harris Mufson, Pinchos Goldberg and Caroline Guensberg on Posted in Best Practices, OSHA Administration, State-Specific Whistleblower Claims
SEC Awards Whistleblower More Than $27 Million
By Lloyd B. Chinn and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in SEC
SDNY Dismisses Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Claim for Lack of Protected Activity and Causation
By Harris Mufson, Pinchos Goldberg and Scott Tan on Posted in Dodd Frank
DOL Decision Confirms Extraterritorial Limits of SOX Whistleblower Provision
By Harris Mufson, Pinchos Goldberg and Dominique Kilmartin on Posted in DOL Decisions, SOX Whistleblower Decisions
SDNY: Directors Not Liable For Whistleblower Claims Under SOX
By Steven J. Pearlman, Pinchos Goldberg and Scott Tan on Posted in SOX Whistleblower Decisions
CFTC Releases FY 2019 Annual Report
By Lloyd B. Chinn, Pinchos Goldberg and Scott Tan on Posted in CFTC
NLRB Permits Confidentiality Restrictions During Internal Investigations
By Lloyd B. Chinn and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in Best Practices, Investigations
ARB: “Hinting” at Filing a Whistleblower Complaint is Not Protected Activity
By Steven J. Pearlman, Pinchos Goldberg and Abigail Rosenblum on Posted in Key ARB Decisions
U.S. Senate Introduces Bill to Extend Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Protections
By Harris Mufson, Pinchos Goldberg and Tony S. Martinez on Posted in Dodd Frank, Legislation
Second Circuit Holds Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Retaliation Claims are Arbitrable
By Lloyd B. Chinn and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in Dodd Frank
District of Rhode Island Dismisses In-House Attorney’s SOX Whistleblower Claim for Lack of Protected Activity
By Steven J. Pearlman, Pinchos Goldberg and Tony S. Martinez on Posted in SOX Whistleblower Decisions
Eastern District of Pennsylvania Grants Summary Judgment on SOX Claim
By Lloyd B. Chinn, Tony S. Martinez and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in SOX Whistleblower Decisions
Whistleblower Challenges Delayed Bounty Award
By Lloyd B. Chinn and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in SEC
4th Circuit Vacates ARB SOX Whistleblower Decision for Lack of Protected Activity
By Steven J. Pearlman, H. Ren Morris and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in SOX Whistleblower Decisions
SDNY Dismisses SOX and Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Claims Against Private Company
By Steven J. Pearlman, Jacob L. Hirsch and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in Dodd Frank, SOX Whistleblower Decisions
SEC Awards Joint Whistleblowers $3 Million Even Though Information Was Not Voluntarily Given
By Steven J. Pearlman, Annabel Pollioni and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in SEC
House Financial Services Committee Passes Bill to Expand Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Protection to Internal Whistleblowers
By Steven J. Pearlman, Philippe A. Lebel and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in Dodd Frank, Legislation
SEC Awards Whistleblower More Than $4.5 Million
By Lloyd B. Chinn and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in SEC
Update on Bofl SOX Whistleblower Litigation
By Lloyd B. Chinn, Pinchos Goldberg and Annabel Pollioni on Posted in SOX Whistleblower Decisions
Expansive Amendments to New York Whistleblower Protection Law Introduced
By Lloyd B. Chinn and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in Legislation, State-Specific Whistleblower Claims
Hospital Sues Whistleblower for Failing to Report Information And Choosing Instead to Use As Basis for Claim
By Steven J. Pearlman and Pinchos Goldberg on Posted in False Claims Act
